Courtney Davies' Blog

Over the years RIM (Research in Motion) has developed some of the most popular technologically advanced handheld devices, including the blackberry playbook and blackberry smartphones. RIM has revolutionized the way we perceive and utilize our current technology. During the London riots, RIM’s blackberry was thought to have played a large role in the communication between rioters involved in the London fires and the subsequent political unrest. The British government hoped that RIM would provide information about specific customers and their phone records. RIM refused to publically state the amount of information they divulged to the police.

Should a company have the right to divulge information to the government or law enforcement? I believe that there is a fine line drawn from what is socially business acceptable, and what denotes a political conflict related to a company’s ethical standpoint. A company initself can choose whether or not to supply information, but it may go against the client-customer confidentiality agreement proposed by many corporations. The social responsibility of the company is to assist the government, but does assisting the government mean going against ethical company relationships? I believe in most scenarios, including the London riots, the government has the right to pull information from a company’s resources no matter how personal the information may be.

http://businessethicsblog.com/2011/08/09/the-blackberry-riots-what-should-rim-do/

 MacDonald, Chris. “The “BlackBerry Riots” — What Should RIM Do?” The Business Ethics Blog. 9 Aug. 2011. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. <http://businessethicsblog.com/2011/08/09/the-blackberry-riots-what-should-rim-do/>.